... to see educational materials from Bear Trust International being distributed in public schools via the National Science Teachers Association. Under the guise of a small, nonprofit conservation organization, this group has worked with the gun lobby to try to defeat the Black Bear Protection Act (twice!) and delist endangered species like the gray wolf. Now they are craftily posing the question of whether to delist the grizzly bear from the Endangered Species Act. This is no surprise given that their founder and board members are award-winning trophy hunters of exotic species.

They are now lobbying to pass bill HR 2406. The Sportsmen's Heritage and Recreational Enhancement (S.H.A.R.E. Act) would remove federal protections for gray wolves, expand trapping and recreational shooting on public lands, block efforts to restrict the use of toxic lead ammunition, block efforts to crack down on the global ivory trade, and even allow the importation of trophy polar bears from Canada.

Why this is important...

Virunga is Africa’s oldest national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is also the continent’s most biologically diverse protected area. The park’s 7,800 square kilometers (3,000 square miles) is the last refuge of the endangered mountain gorilla as well as elephants, hippos, chimpanzees and countless other species.

UK oil company SOCO International PLC has been pressing to explore for oil in the park, risking the pristine habitat in search of easy money. Such exploration is illegal under the law of Congo but SOCO do not appear to care and appear to be willing to use their financial weight to muscle their way into the park. SOCO allegedly bribed the president of the DR of Congo to gain permission to drill in the Park.

In January 2011 SOCO employees allegedly forced their way into the Park, resulting in several international agencies declaring their intention to bring lawsuits against SOCO. SOCO's money is destabilizing an already fragile region and they must not be allowed to destroy this critical environmental treasure (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SOCO_International).

Lonesome George

Every now and then George closes his eyes for a few centuries the stars stop for the occasion and the sun goes out, his night lit only by dream...

"Hello, big boy," she says, shell new and lustrous, green as the deep sea; and her eyes deep as the dark gems that glow deep where it roots...

George, lifting his nose skyward still seeing her behind his closed eyes moves forwardslow as lava oozing from the bottom of the sea

His scaled feet arch like trees first planted then pulled up from their roots...

"I'm coming," he says.

Written by, Steve Campbell

"Lonesome George" is the name given by biologists to the last surviving male Giant Galapagos Tortoise. There are no surviving females.

The entire Giant Galapagos Tortoise species was destroyed directly by humans. The tortoise's shells were used to make tourist trinkets. The shell is part of the tortoise's body (like turtles). Without their shell, they die much like a human having their skin removed (I imagine, equally as painful).

The animal was usually still alive when it's 'soft' body was cruelly cut out from it's shell. In countries like China, and the Island of Bali, this brutal and unethical practice of live tortoise/turtle slaughter continues.

George is approximately 90 years old. In 2008, great efforts were made to help George produce offspring by fertilizing eggs of a 'close' relative species. Sadly, the experiment failed.

George is the rarest known creature in the world and... the loneliest.